BERLIN, July 21 (RAPSI) - Germany says it does not plan to file a lawsuit with the European Court of Justice against Russia regarding the annexation of Crimea at this point, spokesperson for the German government Christiane Wirtz told journalists Monday.

Crimea became a Russian region after a referendum on March 16 in which the majority of the region’s population voted to join Russia. The European Commission and the European Council denounced the referendum as illegal and said they would not recognize it. Moscow has repeatedly stressed that the referendum complied with international law and the UN Charter and that the final decision on the annexation of Crimea was based only on the results of the referendum.

The US and the EU imposed sanctions against some Russian citizens after the reunification of Crimea and Russia. They were banned from entry, and their foreign assets frozen. If the situation with Ukraine escalates further, the Western countries are threatening economically oriented sanctions against Russia. Moscow has repeatedly responded that sanctions are inappropriate and counterproductive.

On June 3, Ukraine filed a lawsuit with the ECtHR against Russia regarding Crimea and the natural gas in Crimea’s underground storage facilities. Russia’s permanent representative in the EU, Vladimir Chizhov, said Kiev’s lawsuit has no chance for success.